


The New Guy

by ChokolatteJedi



Category: Ghost in the Shell
Genre: Artificial Intelligence, Canon - Anime, Cybernetics, Cyborgs, Gen, New Job, Pre-Canon, Yuletide, Yuletide 2012, introductions
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-11-06
Updated: 2012-11-06
Packaged: 2017-11-18 03:48:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,439
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/556567
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChokolatteJedi/pseuds/ChokolatteJedi
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Togusa starts a new job</p>
            </blockquote>





	The New Guy

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Amand_r](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Amand_r/gifts).



> Thanks to my wonderful beta, Merriman!

Togusa peeked into the workout room and saw Batou servicing one of the weight lifting machines. He started to back away, but the cyborg must have heard him, as his head jerked up. "Hey new guy! It's Togusa, right?" he called.

"Oh, uh, yeah." Togusa entered the room fully and looked around, but none of the others were about. Togusa hadn’t had a chance to talk to Batou in his first two days with Public Security Section 9, though he had seen him at his first group meeting that morning. Mostly the Major had done his introductions to the facility, so Togusa was unsure of how to approach the other man.

"So you're from the police HQ, right?" Batou certainly seemed friendly. "How long were you there?"

"Almost six years. What about you? Were you a police officer?"

"Oh, I'm ex-military," Batou explained. "I was a Ranger, but I've been with the old ape for near ten years now."

"Old ape?" Togusa repeated, unsure of what he was referring to.

"Batou grinned, his dead eyes an odd juxtaposition, "Chief Aramaki."

Togusa recoiled. "Doesn't he object to you calling him that?" he gasped.

"Yes, but that hasn't stopped him yet," a new voice declared. Togusa turned around and saw the Major standing in the doorway behind him. She had changed out of the neat tan uniform he had seen her in for the last two days and was now wearing some kind of skimpy purple jumpsuit with high stockings and a dark jacket.

Togusa quickly looked away as soon as he realized he was staring. He was used to his wife and the few women on the force, who all dressed quite conservatively. In his experience, the only ones who dressed like that were…were…

"Heading home?" Batou asked, her, distracting Togusa from his train of thought.

The Major offered him a small smile. "To a friend's place."

Batou grunted. "Say hi for me."

"Don't stay here too late," she retorted, making for the far exit. "And don't go filling our new guy's head with your irreverent nonsense."

Togusa found himself watching her leave for just a moment before he jerked away. He was married! He shouldn't be looking at other women! And normally he never did, but… the way she was dressed…

"She's a looker, isn't she?" Batou piped up. Togusa glanced at him and caught the lewd expression on the older man's face.

"I… uh… that is…"

Fortunately the soldier continued over his stammers. "And you'd never know to look at her that it's all fake."

"What?" Togusa glanced back at the closed door. "She's a cyborg?"

"Yeah. Didn't you know?"

"No, she never mentioned it."

"She wouldn't," Batou snorted, stacking the weights. "She's been in a full body prosthetic since she was just a child. Some kind of medical condition."

"And you?" He wouldn't normally be so bold, but since the other man had been the one to bring it up, Togusa felt a little more at ease.

"Heh. I got mine piece by piece." Batou offered him a cockeyed grin. "One battle wound after another, but by now I'm all machine."

"Oh." Togusa didn’t know what to say to that. Should he offer condolences? Congratulations? Most of the members of the police force were fully or almost fully human. Sometimes a prosthesis was needed after a particularly bad shooting, but full cyborgs were avoided for bureaucratic reasons.

"Actually, most of Section 9 is at least partly cybernetic," Batou continued blithely. "Hey, you're fully human, though, aren't you?'

"Yes."

"So have they set you up with an appointment to get your cyberbrain yet?"

Togusa squirmed. The Major had mentioned that, though no specific appointment had been made as far as he knew. "Soon," he finally admitted. She had explained that all of the Public Security Section 9 members had had the full brain and neck implant and Togusa had balked a bit at the thought. After a long conversation with Chief Aramaki he finally accepted that modification.

"You going to get some other upgrades while you're at it?' Batou asked cheerfully.

"N- no!" Togusa stammered. How could they all speak of body modification so freely? Desperately he sought for a way to change the topic. His gaze lit upon the weights Batou was pumping and he blurted out, "If you're a cyborg, why do you lift weights? Does it do anything for mechanical body parts?"

"Nah," Batou shrugged. "But I enjoy doing it."

He resumed his workout and Togusa figured that was the most explanation he was going to get. He debated asking another question about the Section 9 team, but he wasn't sure he'd like the answer. Just when he decided to head down to the shooting range that the Major had shown him earlier, Batou spoke again.

"So, you're not going cybernetic yourself, but you've got no problem working with us tin cans here in Section 9. I'm guessing then that you aren't abstaining for religious reasons."

The question caught Togusa completely off guard. Again. The police rarely discussed religion on duty. Just one more thing he'd have to get used to in the paradox that was Section 9. "Uh, no. Not religious reasons, really. It's just… the idea of it just… that is…"

"It creeps you out." Batou cheerfully supplied the words.

"Uh, yeah." Togusa nodded, extremely grateful that the cyborg man wasn't offended. "I've just… never really known anyone with a major prosthesis before," he admitted, "let alone a full cyborg."

"Neither had I, before I got these," Batou admitted, jerking a thumb at his eyes. "Happened when I was just a little punk brat. I don't mind telling you that I was seriously freaked out when the doc told me what he was going to do."

There was a long pause before Togusa felt brave enough to ask, "but you still got them."

"Yup! And it gets easier after the first one."

Togusa nodded, unsure what to say about that, but he did feel a bit better about his own impending cyberbrain surgery.

The silence stretched on before Batou suddenly dropped his weight bar. "Hey, did you ever work with any AI machines on the force?" He sounded especially excited.

"We had a couple of dispatcher units," Togusa offered doubtfully, quite sure that he was missing something.

Batou scoffed. "Not those antiques. I'm talking about a real AI tank unit!"

Togusa blinked in shock. No prefecture force could afford something like that. "No, never. Do you have one?"

"You mean the Major hasn't shown you the –"

"Mister Batou!" a high voice declared from behind Togusa. He whirled around, but the room was still empty.

"What the?"

"Mister Batou, we're playing hide and seek with our sensors off. Have-"

"Hide and seek?" Batou repeated skeptically.

Togusa continued to look around the room, trying to find the source of the voice, but the room was completely empty save for himself and the cyborg man.

"Yes! We read a file about it and it sounded like a good training program. But I can't find the others! Have you seen them?"

Batou grinned. "Wouldn't that be cheating?"

The other voice changed tone immediately. "Well, um… hey! Is this someone new? Is this a friend of yours Mr. Batou?"

Batou chuckled. "This is the new guy, Togusa."

"A new member of Section 9? Awesome!"

Togusa was now completely confused. "Batou, what is-"

"It is so nice to meet you Mister Togusa! Welcome to Section 9! I'm Tachikoma! Can you tell us stories about what you did before?"

"Easy now, Tachikoma," Batou held up his hand and cut off the overwhelming tirade. "Why don't you uncloak so he can meet you properly?"

"Oh! But then I'd lose the game!" the Tachikoma protested.

"It's really alright-" Togusa began to say. "I really should be getting h-"

"Nah, it'll only take a little while to find the others," Batou reassured him, pointing at his cybernetic eyes. "You've really gotta meet the Tachikoma properly before you leave."

A part of him wondered if it was too late to go back to Police HQ, but Togusa just sighed in resignation and followed the other man.

Before he had taken more than one step, the disembodied voice of the Tachikoma piped back up. "So Mister Togusa, where did you work before?”

Togusa opened his mouth to reply, but the invisible voice didn’t give him the chance.

“What did you do? Was it fun? Why did you join Section 9?”

Togusa gave up on answering and simply allowed the Tachikoma to chatter.

“You’re a full human, aren’t you? Do you have any interesting souvenirs?"


End file.
